Baby kale salad with strawberry-mint vinaigrette, avocado, goat cheese, and almonds. This vibrant, healthy salad is perfect for summer.
Ever since I turned in my manuscript for Let Them Eat Kale!
Not because I lost that loving feeling toward the leafy green, but because my kale tank was full and it hasn’t been until recently that I felt I needed to replenish it. So this weekend, I did a little house, dog, and cat-sitting, a little wine-ing (shocked?), and a lot of kale-ing.
I had strawberries that were ripe for the using and some fresh herbs, so I decided to make a strawberry-mint vinaigrette for the kale salad. The vinaigrette turned out sweet, tangy, and refreshing.
I used baby kale leaves because they require less prep than your standard curly kale. And I was busy wine-ing so I couldn’t be bothered to stop and massage the kale. No way, no how. Solution: baby kale.
I threw sunflower seeds, almonds, avocado, fresh chopped mint, and goat cheese into the mix and ended up with a flavorful, healthful, vibrant, spring salad. Ripe for the eating!
Baby Kale Salad with Strawberries, Goat Cheese, and Strawberry-Mint Vinaigrette
An explosion of flavor and texture, this Baby Kale Salad with Strawberries, Goat Cheese, and Strawberry-Mint Vinaigrette is marvelously vibrant and delicious!
Ingredients
For the Strawberry-Mint Vinaigrette:
- 1 cup heaping ripe strawberries, chopped
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar, I used golden balsamic
- 3 leaves mint, chopped
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ cup avocado oil
For the Salad:
- 5 ounces baby kale
- 2 cups ripe strawberries, chopped
- ½ cup raw almonds
- 2 tablespoons raw sunflower seeds
- 1 avocado, peeled and diced
- 4 leaves mint, chopped
- Goat cheese
Instructions
To Prepare the Strawberry-Mint Vinaigrette:
- In a small skillet, heat the balsamic vinegar and strawberries over medium-high heat and bring to a full boil. Allow mixture to boil and cook until strawberries are very soft, about 5 to 8 minutes. Mash the strawberries with a fork. Note: this will make your house smell like vinegar. But that's okay.
- Remove from heat, add the mint leaves, maple syrup, and salt and stir. Allow the mixture to cool slightly before transferring it to a cup or bowl and refrigerating until cool.
- Once cool, strain the strawberry pulp and mint leaves out of the mixture using a fine mesh strainer.
- Pour the mixture into a small blender, such as a Magic Bullet, along with the oil and blend until smooth (you can also whisk the strawberry vinegar and oil together by hand vigorously until combined). Set aside until ready to use.
To Prepare the Salad:
- Add all of the ingredients for the salad except for the goat cheese to a large serving bowl. Toss in desired amount of dressing (you will not need all of the dressing). Serve salad with goat chevre.
Notes
If serving this salad as an entre, it will feed 2 people. If serving it as a side salad, you can feed up to 4.
Nutrition Information
Yield 2 Serving Size 1 of 2Amount Per Serving Calories 750Total Fat 65gUnsaturated Fat 0gCarbohydrates 33gFiber 14gSugar 16gProtein 17g
Francesca
Monday 19th of May 2014
I happen to have all these things in my fridge right now!
Off I go!
Alexis @ Hummusapien
Monday 12th of May 2014
YAYYYYYY for beebies and uber yummy kale salads!! I seriously die over every salad you create. Da salad ka-weeeeeennn!
Julia
Tuesday 13th of May 2014
Haha! I want to squeeze you right now!
Joanne
Friday 9th of May 2014
So this is pretty much the prettiest kale salad that I ever did see! And that totally counts where the pink factor is concerned. I want to dunk my face in this and not come up until the bowl is clean.
Lindsey @ American Heritage Cooking
Thursday 8th of May 2014
Haha! You would certainly be welcome to my shower with this salad in hand! It looks amazing! I love a good kale salad with fresh fruit. And that vinaigrette sounds divine! I'll have to go check out your cookbook because you can never have enough kale...well, you caaaan but you know what I mean!
Mallory @ Because I Like Chocolate
Wednesday 7th of May 2014
I do enjoy baby kale for the same reasons; it's just so much easier to use!